Promoting diversity, multiculturalism and basic rights
The government of Mexico City wishes to play a more active role in shaping the learning opportunities available to its citizens.
Vision and Motivation
By encouraging multisectoral participation, Mexico City aims to develop a complex network of public spaces that make lifelong learning opportunities accessible to all residents and promote diversity, multiculturalism and basic rights. Mexico City’s chief objective is to enhance the skills of citizens of all ages. This will promote individuals’ sense of well-being and personal satisfaction, reduce inequality in the city and promote greater social integration.
Challenges and Goals
The Government of the Federal District’s General Plan for Development for the years 2013 to 2018 identifies a number of challenges currently facing the city. It is hoped that the learning city approach can help tackle these challenges. They include:
- rising rates of obesity;
- illiteracy;
- a growing gap between rich, highly educated citizens on one hand, and poor, low-skilled citizens on the other;
- high population density located in an area of high susceptibility to natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods, landslides and volcanic eruptions; and effects of climate change, pollution, the overexploitation of resources and water shortages.
Plan and Implementation
To give citizens access to a broad array of learning opportunities, Mexico City designed many projects, including:
- free civil protection courses;
- a cycling school called Bici Escuela. This educates citizens on the rights and obligations of all road users and traffic rules for cyclists in the city. The programme runs alongside the city’s ECOBICI bicycle sharing scheme and the Muévete en Bici (Move by Bike) scheme. Meanwhile, Road Safety and Crime Prevention is a programme offering training, conferences and workshops that help citizens to be safer on Mexico City’s streets.
- Vamos a separar (Let’s Separate) provides training on recycling and composting waste.
- Ciudad Lectora (Reading City) encourages citizens to read. Literacy programme aims to reduce the illiteracy rate among citizens aged 15 years and over.
- School Violence and Culture of Peace aims to reduce discriminatory practices that generate exclusion, abuse and violence in schools and families.
Mexico City also hosted the 2nd International Conference on Learning Cities in 2015. The conference culminated in the adoption of the Mexico City Statement on Sustainable Learning Cities, which outlines the role that learning cities play in achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and defines strategic directions and action points for building sustainable learning cities.
If we do not share knowledge, if it is not inclusive and does not reach everyone, genuine learning for all is not possible. In Mexico City, learning opportunities are offered to all citizens of all ages.
Mr Miguel Ángel Mancera
UIL is not responsible for the content of this city profile.
